Christmas Traditions...

Do you have any Christmas traditions in your house?  We have a few, and I seem to be adding new ones every year (without taking the old ones away - makes for a very busy December!!)  This year is no exception...  because this is the year Santa decided he would send us "Elf on the Shelf"!  It went down like this.....

When I got home from work, I was happy to share with Alex that I'd received an anonymous text to say that someone or something was coming to our house this afternoon, so we needed to be home and be ready!  Alex was very good - a quick swim in the pool then Alex had his bath...  he was just tidying the toys in his room when there was a knock at the door!  When we got there nobody was there, but there was a package on our doorstep addressed to Alex, with an envelope that had a picture of Santa and said "From the desk of Santa Claus" (major excitement ensued... bordering on hysteria actually.... and Alex was pretty excited too!)

There was a letter from Santa saying he appreciated all Alex's efforts to be a good boy so far and look after his toys, and that he'd sent a special friend to help Alex to stay on the nice list.

We then opened the box to reveal the Elf on the Shelf (I suspect Santa might've have some help from here... which is also where I got the below image):

As per Santa's instructions we read the book to discover that our elf would fly back to Santa every night while Alex slept to report on whether he'd been naughty or nice, and that Alex musn't touch him or he'll lose his magic....  The book also said we needed to give our elf a name - predictably, Alex decided he would be called Elfie!  (Aren't almost-5-year-olds so original?)

We wasted no time in finding Elfie his very own position on our shelf - this shelf sits above the desk right in the middle of the living area (you can see I've already been busy decorating, so Elfie feels right at home!  Excuse the grainy iPhone pics....)

Here's a close up of him sitting right next to a baby photo of Alex:

Alex has NOT. STOPPED. TALKING to him or about him since he turned up..... He is SO excited!!  He's shown him the presents Santa brought him last year, speculated about the places we might find him hiding in the morning, wondered how he might incorporate Elfie into show and tell (without touching him and taking him to Kindy)....  Oh the fun!!!

Can't wait to see all the funny things Elfie will do - Santa did warn us that this particular elf is a bit cheeky, so we should keep an eye on him.... sounds ominous!

Does anyone else have their own Elf on the Shelf?  What funny things does your elf get up to?  I will be sure to share our Elfie's antics with you all!

Bye for now ;)

Foodie Friday : Asian Meatballs & Peanut Salad

G'day friends! Once again, its been a long time! I did get a rhythm and some regularity for a while, but then life got in the way…. As it tends to do!   I hope to be doing a little Christmas blogging for you soon (I just LOVE Christmas and all the colour and fun and trandtion it brings)....  but for now, randomly after almost four months, here is a Foodie Friday post for you!! 
 
I got the recipe for these tasty little meatballs from my Aunty about 8 years ago. I used to make them all the time but haven’t made them in ages. A few months back I went to a dietician in an effort to get into some healthy eating – and we’ve been (mostly) really good – but the lack of variety was starting to get me down… so I mentioned it to Mim and Boofy, and they felt exactly the same... as it turns out we were all feeling that way but none of us had mentioned it to the others!

So anyways, cue the Asian meatballs! I decided to make my own concoction of a salad to go with it, and it all worked very nicely. Here they are:

MEATBALLS

1kg mince
300g mushrooms, finely diced
2 grated carrots
1 egg
1 clove garlic, grated
1 nob ginger, grated
Coriander, finely chopped (I didn’t put this in, but I think it would be awesome and I will next time!!)
Sesame seeds
Soy sauce
Sesame oil

In a bowl combine all ingredients except the last two. Then add a few splashes of sesame oil, and a few more than that of soy sauce. Sorry I can’t be more specific on that – I did add quite a bit and mine was overkill on the soy – so just enough that your mixture holds together pretty well.

Roll your mixture into balls and place on a greased tray. Bake in a 200 degree oven for around half an hour (or until cooked), turning once.

SALAD

2/3 bag Woolies rainbow salad (finely shredded carrot, beetroot & broccoli stems)
¼ of a wombok, shredded (Chinese cabbage)
½ bunch coriander, chopped
½ bunch mint, chopped
3 celery stalks, sliced
½ red capsicum, diced
Handful of unsalted, roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted

Dressing
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 ½ tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon soy
1 ½ teaspoons grated ginger
1 small clove garlic, grated
Salt to taste

Combine dressing ingredients in a jar and shake it up to mix. Toss salad stuff together with your desired amount of dressing (we didn’t use it all) and serve – couldn’t be easier! (I was also going to put some avocado slices on the top but I forgot – you might like to try this).

And there you go…

A delicious and pretty healthy meal. What’s on your table this week friends?

Bye for now :)